The Mixed Tape
by Aienkien-Jitsuni
Summary: [ AU ] [ Inu x K? ] A Teenage Romance. An Unforgotten Promise. A Mixed Tape. It’s been four years since that summer night, yet InuYasha still can’t seem to forget about the girl he fell in love with...The only problem? He doesn’t even know her name. R&R!
1. Prologue & T h e P r o m i s e

**Fanfiction Title:** The Mixed Tape  
**Fanfiction Author: **Aienkien-Jitsuni  
**Fanfiction Summary: ****AU** **_x _**_Inu POV_ **_x_**A Teenage Romance. An Unforgotten Promise. A Mixed Tape. It's been four years since that summer night, yet InuYasha still can't seem to forget about the girl he fell in love with...The only problem? He doesn't even know her name. R&R.  
**Fiction Rating: **T  
**Fanfiction Genre:** Romance & Drama  
**Publish Date: **07/02/06

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**What About_ Isn't Life Juicy?_**  
Okay, some of you may be wondering what the hell I'm doing since I'm starting a new fanfic story, instead of writing a new chapter _Isn't Life Juicy?_ The truth is that sometimes I get tired of writing _Isn't Life Juicy? _The chapters in that story are very time consuming, very long, and take a lot out of me when I'm writing it. It takes forever just to plan out the chapter and it takes even longer to write it! Not to mention, proofreading and editing it -- and these chapters are 20 pages long. I nearly died from frustration while writing the last chapter! It went through many edits and I rewrote a lot of parts. The chapter ended up being the longest chapter I've ever written (30+ pages), and although I'm very proud of my work, it leaves me exhausted. But don't worry -- this doesn't mean I won't be updating _Isn't Life Juicy? _

**Author's Note: **Every now and then I feel like I need a break from _Isn't Life Juicy?_ -- so this is where I'll be turning to whenever I feel frustrated or stressed out from writing. I have the whole storyline planned out, so all I need to worry about is the details (which I'm still figuring out). I'm hoping that this will be a simple story to write, despite the complicated storyline. The inspiration for this story is the song, "The Mixed Tape" by Jack's Mannequin -- a song I absolutely _adore_. I was just thinking about writing a new fanfic story but I just wasn't inspired by anything, until this song came up on my play list and started playing. When I listened to the lyrics, this idea just popped into my head. This is the result of that! _I really hope you guys enjoy reading it as much as I've enjoyed writing it! _

**Disclaimers: **I do not own InuYasha or any of Rumiko Takahashi's characters. I also do not own the song 'The Mixed Tape' by Jack's Mannequin.

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**The Mixed Tape **

_An Alternate Universe Fanfiction_

A n I n u Y a s h a & P a i r i n g F a n f i c

By Aienkien-Jitsuni

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**Prologue -- T h e P r o m i s e **

The Promise Upon Daybreak

**"**_This is morning…  
__That's when I spend the most time,  
__Thinking 'bout what I've given up…_**"

* * *

**

**_H_**is dark violet eyes were getting lost in the grey hues of her overcast eyes.

It had nearly taken the whole night for the adolescent boy to look directly into them.  
To directly look at her without being timid, reserved, distant, guarded --  
Signature character traits that should have been attributed to him.  
Yet somehow, her calm blue-grey eyes had managed to break through the protective barrier that he had secluded himself in.

**Her very presence had that kind of an affect on you. **

The young teenager searched her stormy eyes desperately for any sign of reassurance.  
That things would be okay, that they were going to be happy together…  
That this incredible night would never end.

But the lingering hope the dark-haired boy was looking for couldn't be found in her eyes.  
And the sky had already started its transitioning from its dark shade of night to its early morning tints, signaling the night's end.

"Well, I guess…this is goodbye."  
She whispered softly, avoiding his indigo-eyed gaze.

"No." He said stubbornly, childishly.  
The black-haired teen knew he was being selfish.  
But hell, he was _not_ going to say goodbye.

"…Excuse me?" She asked quietly, taken aback by the tone in his voice.

"I said _NO._" He growled angrily, clenching his fists.  
His body began to shake uncontrollably and a salty scent coming from him started to become stronger.

"I thought we talked about this…" The dark-haired girl murmured, her voice trembling.

"You are not _FUCKING_ leaving! Youare staying _right here_, _where you belong! Got that?_" He blurted out loud unconsciously.  
He no longer had the mental or physical strength to control his emotional state. It was a sharp reminder that he hadn't gotten any sleep in over 24 hours.

The violet-eyed boy was lacking so much sleep that he didn't even notice the salty scent in the air.  
But this time, it wasn't coming from him -- it was coming from the sobbing girl before him.

"_Y-YOU JERK! _Do you have any idea how _hard_ this is for me, how _painful_ it is…" She started walking up to the teenage boy, jabbing fingers harshly into his chest with every single syllable she said.

"…_You're so inconsiderate!_" She screamed at him, tears pouring down her pale angelic face.

The sight of the weeping girl with tears streaming down her cloudy eyes made the teenage boy wish that he could take back every insensitive word he had said to her.

Words unable to express how he felt about her, he gathered the girl forcefully into his arms. He embraced her fragile, shaking frame and ran his clawed hands through her long, black tresses. After taking in her intoxicating indescribable scent, he steadied his voice despite the throbbing lump in his throat. He grudgingly tried his best to hold his tears back.

"I…I don't want you to leave me…" He admitted to her in a painful whisper. "I don't want to be alone again…"

He tightened his grip on her, not ready to let go of the girl in his arms. As he rested his chin on the dark-haired girl's head, his dark violet eyes filled with affliction looked up towards the quickly changing blue sky above him. Beyond the trees of the woods, he saw a rose-tinted horizon and a peeking sun ready to rise.

**Despite nature being able to forget about the night,  
****He could not bring himself to let go. **

"I don't…I don't want to leave you." The girl muffled into his red flannel shirt, crying silently as she squeezed the comforting fabric between her fingers. The hanyou didn't know it but she was clutching his plaid sleeve just as tight as he was holding onto her.

She told herself that she was ready, that she was prepared to say goodbye.  
The dark-haired girl had kept repeating it to herself constantly throughout the night --  
To remind her that once this fairy tale night was over, she would return to reality without getting hurt.

But the strong-willed girl was weak all along, ever since his dark violet eyes caught her breath.  
Her mind was set and she was mentally prepared, but her heart could not and would not agree with her.

**Despite her mind being able to forget about the night,  
****She could not bring her heart to let go.**

By this time the bright stars had already vanished, while the white moon was slowly fading away into the vast heavens above. The sky hanging above them was shifting quickly into elusive shades of lavender and amethyst, with subtle pink hues tingeing the scattered clouds.

"I…I'm sorry. _I'm so sorry..._" The young girl whispered regretfully, burying her head into the soothing warmth of his chest.  
She squeezed her eyes shut, trying to stop the tears and the pain flowing from her eyes -- but it was no use. Because even behind her closed eyelids, she could feel the crack of dawn approaching them.

And just like the first light of day coming nearer, he held her even closer to him.

"Baka…" He scolded harshly into her ear. "Baka! I should be the one apologizing to you!"  
_'Why? Why are you always so kind and considerate to a half-breed like me?'  
_The adolescent thought to himself silently, not wanting to voice out his words.  
He was afraid that if he had, he might have started to cry right in the middle of his sentence.

The dark-haired girl slowly looked up at him, rivulets of tears streaming down her porcelain face.  
She was smiling.

If it was anything that the teenage boy had loved more than her translucent eyes, it was her beautiful smile.  
Being influenced by her contagious smile, he grinned down at the girl.  
Their bittersweet smiles covered up the visibleapprehension inboth oftheir eyes.

The girl abruptly broke her gaze and grabbed his hand confidently, unaware of how bold a move the dark-haired boy had thought it was. Interlacing her slender fingers in-between his, she led them to the well where they had met earlier the night before. She sat on it and he followed her. For a while she looked off into the horizon, her gray-blue eyes glowing amidst the rosy pink sky above them while her curly dark tresses gleamed a bluish sheen. He watched her intensely with his dark violet eyes, engraving her profile into his mind.

"Hey, you know what?" She spoke softly, looking up into the faint mauve clouds while swinging her feet back and forth on the well. "Even though it's painful…even though it hurts…and even if it makes me terribly lonely and want to cry…"

She turned her face towards him, her stormy hued eyes smiling sadly.  
"I don't regret this unforgettable night. I don't regret meeting you."

The dark-haired boy stared at her intently with his violet eyed gaze wordlessly.  
'_I…I don't regret meeting you either! I won't forget about this night! I want to tell you, but…_'

"It's funny…how we met by chance." Her overcast eyes started to become hazy again and her voice started to tremble, "But…now that I think about it…it's not…it's really not funny at all…"

Tears started to spill from her eyes and she cried without making a sound.  
She started to look away but the hanyou stopped her, placing a hand on her chin.  
He tenderly wiped a tear away, avoiding her surprised gray-blue stare.

**Dawn was approaching. **

"We made a lot of silly promises tonight, didn't we?" She said quietly, a sad little smile returning to her face. A giggle started to rise from her throat. Just thinking about their playful swears and pledges made her incredibly happy -- and yet terribly sad at the same time.

"I can't believe I promised you that I would stop cursing and calling you names..." The teenager muttered under his breath as she violently slapped him on his shoulder.

"You jerk! That promise lasted for about two seconds!" She said angrily, her mouth in a scowl -- but her gray-blue eyes were shining playfully.

"How about you Miss 'I promise to not hit or smack you ever again'? That didn't even last one millisecond!" The boy argued, pointing out her mistakes.

"Well, that's only because you promised not to ever call me 'bitch' or 'wench' again! And you broke your promise so I smacked you, which ended up in me breaking my own promise. So it's really all _your_ fault!" The dark-haired girl defended, smiling proudly. The disbelieving boy sorted out all the claims she had said and looked away from her, silently admitting defeat.

"KEH! Like I care about some stupid promise." He snapped at her, crossing his arms stubbornly across his chest.

"Promises aren't stupid, you inconsiderate jerk! Promises are important and should be cherished…" She argued, her voice trailing off gently. The teenage boy silently thought over what she had just said, believing in her and her words. As he caught a glimpse of her, he found her staring off into the horizon again. As the teenage boy followed her gaze, all his thoughts stopped as he saw the sun's rays rising.

**The two looked out into the distance, a feeling of absolute finality overwhelming them. **

Suddenly the dark-haired girl stood up, her choppy bangs covering her eyes. With clenched fists she started to run away from the well, away from their meeting place…and away from the black-haired teenager that she had fell in love with in one night.

"W-Wait!" He called out to her, chasing after the young girl desperately. Frustrated tears started to come to his dark violet eyes. "We didn't even get to say fucking goodbye!"  
'_We didn't get to do a lot of things yet! I didn't even get to tell you how I feel…!_'

The dark-haired girl stopped in her tracks.  
He stopped running and stood right behind her, breathing heavily.

Gathering up his courage and ignoring his fast-paced heartbeats ringing in his ears, he grabbed her hand tightly. He looked back quickly at the increasing light coming from the horizon, indicating the dawning sun.

"I…" He whispered in her ear from behind her. "I…"  
But no matter how hard he tried, he couldn't get the words out.  
There was no time left for hesitations.

Unexpectedly she turned around, her pleading gray-blue eyes catching him off guard.  
"Please...don't say it!" She whispered earnestly to him. "Don't say farewell! That's just one promise…" The dark-haired girl said insistently, squeezing her eyes shut. Still holding onto his hand, she lifted her feet up off from the ground and inched her face closer to his.

Just upon daybreak, two silhouettes merged into one -- making a promise and sealing it with a tender kiss.

She slowly parted her lips from his, the dark-haired girl full of reluctance to break from the sentimental gesture. She looked up into his dark violet eyes for the last time, deeply gazing into his mauve depths.

"Promise me…that you'll never forget me." She whispered desperately, her overcast-hued eyes sparkling in the morning light.

"I won't…I will never forget you." He promised her, his violet eyes and midnight hair fading away -- losing their dark shine as the sun rose.

**She gave him a smile.  
He gave her a mix tape.

* * *

**

As the young girl started to walk away and up the hill, back to her car and back to the reality of her moving to the other side of the world,  
She looked back one final time at the boy that had changed her life forever in one summer night.

But instead of seeing his long black hair and dark violet eyes…  
She could've sworn she saw glimmering silver hair and golden-flecked eyes.

* * *

As the young boy stood there solemnly, watching her walk away and up the hill -- a cold dark reality started to set in. An icy shiver went through his body, despite the now risen sunlight on his back. Then the pain started to wash over him. 

He felt his fingernails grow longer, his teeth go sharper, and his human ears disappearing while his dog ears reappeared.  
His dark human hair and eyes were now replaced with shining silver hair and golden amber demon eyes.

As the painful transformation from human to hanyou was over, he looked up at the hill to find that the beautiful dark-haired girl was gone. And just like that, the only girl that had ever made him feel accepted disappeared along with the unforgettable night.

'_I didn't get a chance to say that I…I…._'

Despite all that had happened,  
Despite him meeting the only girl for him,  
Despite his terrible lonely life now having a purpose,  
Despite everything…He still couldn't bring himself to say those three little words.  
Even though it was too late for him to say anything, he still couldn't say it.

'_Why can't I fucking say three goddamn words?_'

* * *

The answer suddenly hit InuYasha.  
He didn't even know her name.

* * *

**_T o B e C o n t i n u e d …._**

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**Author's Note:** Well what do you guys think? I hope you guys liked the ending -- I absolutely love the cliffhanger I wrote in this! Anyway, if you guys didn't notice I didn't mention InuYasha's or the promised girl's name at all throughout this whole chapter…it was hard to do but I think it was really worth it to write the chapter that way! Who could the mysterious dark-haired girl possibly be? 

I'm really proud of this and I'm just so glad how this turned out.  
I really enjoyed writing this and I hope you guys enjoyed reading it!

**Please Don't Forget to Review! Until Next Chapter! **

Sincerely,  
**AK-J.**

**

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**

**Cover Art: **www.img424.imageshack.us/img424/4527/themixedtapecoverartyn1.png  
_Prologue -- 'The Promise Upon Daybreak' Art Coming Soon…_

**Inspiration For This Chapter: **Druihd's work (druihd. especially her Fading Memories drawing of InuYasha & Kagome, Kagome's Character Single '_Tatta Hitotsu no Yakusoku_' (Just One Promise Performed by Kagome's Seiyuu, Satsuki Yukino), and songs from the anime Honey & Clover ('Tsuki no Naifu' by Suga Shikao and 'Waltz' by Suneohair.

I strongly suggest listening to those songs and viewing these pictures while reading this chapter!

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**N e x t C h a p t e r o f T h e M i x e d T a p e --**

Chapter One: The Song _The Hit Debut Song_

"_Where are you now?  
__As I'm swimming through the stereo,  
__I'm writing you a symphony of sound…_"

InuYasha thinks back to that summer night four years ago…  
And how the song he had made for her had turned him into an instant idol.


	2. Chapter One & T h e S o n g

**Author's Note: **Another chapter of _The Mixed Tape_! Since school is coming up soon (a harsh reality that i'm still dealing with), I've realized that I might not have enough time to work on or spend time writing _Isn't Life Juicy?_ I'm still debating whether or not this will be my main focus during the school year, since this story has shorter chapters and is easier to write compared to _Isn't Life Juicy?_ which has super long chapters and takes a lot of time to write. I might even put that story on a hiatus. I don't know yet. But anyway I'd just like to thank my reviewers (Mangasfan, hieiluva, and 0TwistedAngel0) for the amazing support and encouragng reviews! A big thanks to my sister, Amber as well -- for being there every step of the way! Finally, I present to you Chapter One of the Mixed Tape -- The Song Inspired by the Morning After. I hope you enjoy reading it just as much as I enjoyed writing it!

**Disclaimers: **I do not own InuYasha or any of Rumiko Takahashi's characters. I also do not own the song 'The Mixed Tape' by Jack's Mannequin.**

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**

**The** **Mixed Tape **

_An Alternate Universe Fanfiction_

A n I n u Y a s h a & P a i r i n g F a n f i c

By Aienkien-Jitsuni

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**Chapter One -- T h e S o n g**

The Song Inspired By The Morning-After

**-------**

"_This is a warning  
When you start the day just to close the curtains  
You're thinking 'bout what I've given up…_"

* * *

"**_I_**'m hard to remember, but I'm impossible to forget…" She whispered softly. 

A raven-haired girl stood before him, smiling her beautiful bittersweet smile --  
Which matched perfectly with daybreak, her smile capturing the sun's rapture while it was rising.

**An overwhelming sadness washed over the violet-eyed boy.  
**  
He didn't understand why, but some feeling deep within him took over -- and he grabbed onto the girl's hand. The teenager could barely make out her face now, the sun's ginger hued rays covering her pale porcelain face with morning light. And the more he squinted his dark eyes, the more the young girl's silhouette got distorted in the blinding glow of the sun. Soon her overcast grey eyes were nothing but a failing reminder of the dark-haired girl he met the night before.

**They started to fade away into dawn's light.**

As the dark shadowy shape of the girl started to disappear in front of him, the boy started to realize that he himself was vanishing. He slowly closed his now changing-colored eyes, trying to escape reality and hold on to the dream -- yet the morning sun's harsh light still penetrated behind his dark eyelids.

As he felt his demon ears growing and his human ears disappearing, he just barely heard a soft crying voice singing out to him as he fainted ever slowly into the beginning of the day.

* * *

"_But how can you promise the world?  
How can you promise your heart when it's always searching?"_  
_**

* * *

**_

InuYasha fluttered his golden eyes open and brought his clawed hands to his face, wiping the sleep from his eyes.

"_But I'm just like you…"_

The hanyou irritably smacked the radio alarm clock off, annoyed at the song that had woke him up. After muttering a couple of curse words to himself, he lay in his bed for a while -- his silver tresses spread out messily over the crumpled crisp white sheets. His golden orbs trailed from the wooden floor to the high ceiling, resting his gaze upon the blank space and spinning ceiling fan.

"Fuck." He murmured to himself as he closed shut his glowing demon eyes, deep in thought.

InuYasha racked his brain, desperately trying to remember the dream he had just woken up from -- but it was the same every single morning. Every night he had the same reoccurring dream, and every morning he found that he couldn't recall a single thing from his nocturnal reverie.

**All the hanyou could remember was the unforgettable night four years ago and the morning after.  
**  
He recalled a memorable summer night.  
He remembered a young girl's silhouette in the sun's dawning light.  
He thought of the song that was on the mixed tape he had given to her.  
He memorized the letter she had given to him.  
He never forgot the promise he had made to her.

Yet all of these were just fragments -- pieces of a blurred, distorted memory.  
These shattered remembrances couldn't answer the burning questions he's held inside for so long.

_How was she? How was she in America?  
_It was devastating enough to hear that an incredible one-of-a-kind girl you had just met was going to move away the next morning. But it was just overwhelming to hear her soft voice confess that she was moving to a different continent, somewhere on the other side of the world. At that time, her father had passed away recently and her mother was in a deep depression for awhile. After much thought and consideration, her mom had decided to accept a job offer in America that she had long ago declined (because at the time the job was offered to her, she was pregnant with her little brother). Wanting happiness and a new beginning for her mother, she sacrificed her own life in Tokyo, Japan so that her mom would smile again -- even though it hurt her deep inside to leave her friends and the life she knew.  
**When she had told him all of this, he didn't want to believe it. He didn't want her to leave.**

_What did she think of the mixed tape he had given her? _  
InuYasha remembered giving her the first mixed tape he had ever made. He had finished it long before that fateful summer night they met. But because she was leaving the next morning and because he didn't have time to make her one, the hanyou had decided to give it to her -- his most cherished possession he had with him at the time. It was a mix of songs close to his heart -- songs that he listened to whenever he ran away from his dysfunctional household and family, songs that made him forget how much of an outcast he was in his own home, songs that made him feel not so alone in the world…_songs that made him feel like he belonged._ And what made it even more special than any other mixed tape was that at the end of the mix, he had inserted the first song he had ever recorded and wrote -- a song that was made such a long time ago that he couldn't even remember how it went anymore. When he sung that song and strummed that guitar, it was the first time he had felt liberated and free.  
**It was a mixed tape composed of songs that had made him feel the same way she had made him feel that night -- accepted. **

_How did she break into my house and leave that letter?_  
The hanyou barely remembered the night he shared with her -- it was all a surreal blur of city lights and late night conversations. Yet somehow he did recall that sometime in the middle of the night he had invited the girl into his house, despite his reluctance and her persistence. It was the first time he had ever invited a girl into his room before, or any other person for that matter. But seeing her there gave his room and his whole house a newfound worthiness, just because of her presence being there. Without the hanyou knowing it at the time, she had found a way to break into his house and into his room, leaving him a hastily scribbled letter on the top of his bed.  
**He carried the letter with him always, folded and tucked away in a pocket on his jacket -- close to his heart.**

_Would she still accept me, even though I'm just merely a half-breed?  
_That summer night he had met her had the best and worst timing possible. They had both met while running away from the unforgiving realities of their lives -- she had to move away and he had to deal with being not good enough for anyone. It was a new moon that night and he had transformed into a dark-haired, dark-eyed human. She didn't even know this fact about him. It was something he was too afraid, too ashamed to reveal to her despite her accepting presence. Deep down inside the silver-haired hanyou, he regretted not telling her. He knew that he was a lot more emotional than he usually was on that hot summer night. For a little while he even used that as an excuse for the aching pain he felt in his heart. He tried his best to forget about the girl he had only spent one night with. He didn't even know her name. But that didn't stop him from loving her.  
**It was inevitable. He had fallen in love with a girl he could barely even remember the face of. He didn't even know her name.**

InuYasha wanted to ask the girl who had changed his life numerous questions.  
But the one burning question that he desperately needed to know was…

_Where are you now?  
_Right after arriving home from the cherished summer night that had ended, he was struck with a heart-aching motivation. So he sat on the wooden floor of his room and wrote her a song that was inspired by his restless feelings of the morning-after. He let the words flow from his heart and mind to the black pen and onto the paper, pouring out the words he didn't get a chance to say. InuYasha had sat there all morning, figuring out the notes on his guitar and writing down the hook and chorus messily. In an act of inspired love, he crossed out lyrics and words and strummed his guitar endlessly until he was finally done with the song. Soon after completing his devoted accomplishment, he passed out from exhaustion and lack of sleep. When he had woken, he found himself with a terrible memory of the past night -- memories blurred, distorted, and fuzzy. InuYasha could barely recall anything that had happened the night before when he woke up. As if an intended reminder of the girl he had met last night, he found a piece of loose leaf paper lying in his lap, scrawled with lyrics. Titled in big bold letters was the title of the song, "**THE MIXED TAPE**". Certain memories flooded back to him -- and each day he began to remember the promise he had made little by little.

**That morning four years ago, InuYasha decided that he would search for her with the song he had written.

* * *

**

(_RING! RING! RING!_)

InuYasha got up from his bed halfheartedly, suddenly snapping back into reality as the ringing noise interrupted his deep train of thought. Grabbing the brand new cell phone (the latest and most expensive model out, in fact) from off his bedside table, he groaned as he saw his manager's name and cell number flash annoyingly on the screen. InuYasha opened the flip phone harshly with his clawed hands.

"What do you want?" The hanyou snapped grumpily, tossing the white bed sheets aside and finally getting up from the warmth and comfort of his bed.

"Well, good morning to you too, Sunshine!" The man on the other side of the phone joked, chuckling at the half-demon's inability to wake up in a good mood. Whenever he called to wake InuYasha up, he never failed to wake up on the _wrong side_ of the bed.

"Fuck you, Miroku." InuYasha shouted over the phone, wishing that his manager was right next to him so that the hanyou could physically punch him in the face. Miroku just continued chuckling over the phone, amazed at how immature the silver-haired half demon could be sometimes (though of course, if they weren't talking over the phone Miroku would have surely shut up).

"I'd be glad to do that." The violet-eyed manager said over the phone. InuYasha gave an exasperated sigh at the unintended sexual innuendo he hadn't meant to say. '_Only Miroku…goddamn lecherous pervert._'

"You're sick, y'know that, Miroku?" InuYasha commented as he walked across his wooden floor to the master bathroom. The hanyou flipped open the light switch and in an instant the white marble floors and walls were lit up with a soft luxurious glow.

"I'll take that as a compliment." Miroku said, unfazed by InuYasha's rude remark. He was obviously used to it. "Anyway, I called in order to tell you that we'll have a very important meeting about the tour you'll be doing over the summer. Be there at noon, sharp. Got it?"

"Keh! Whatever." The half-demon sneered nonchalantly as he started to grab his toothbrush from the granite bathroom counter. He heard his manager groan, obviously frustrated and fed up with his indifferent behavior.

"Just be there, alright?" Miroku asked firmly, giving up on the silver-haired hanyou. A click on the other line ended the conversation. InuYasha closed his cell phone, placed it on the counter, and got into the lavish spa-like shower. His golden eyes were filled with reflective thoughts as he felt the hot water crash down his skin.

-------**4 Years Ago**

"_Where are you now? As I'm swimming through the stereo, I'm writing you a symphony of sound…_"

InuYasha sang his heart out as he strummed the strings of his guitar with his clawed fingers. His golden amber eyes were closed in concentration and he let the music, rhythm, and beat take him away -- far away to a place where the message in his song would get to her.

Ever since that summer night he performed the song he had made for her at every local venue he could find. The silver-haired half-demon was determined to get his song out there. If some talent scout would find him…if someone, anyone was interested in offering him a contract or signing him up to a label…if he somehow got big enough, so big that he was even famous in the United States…maybe, just maybe he might be able to get to her….

But InuYasha knew that was impossible.

" _I can't get to you…I can't get to you…_"

Even so, the hanyou kept on singing, kept on trying, kept on waiting, kept on searching.  
**He never gave up, even though he knew it was hopeless.**

And then, unexpectedly, a young dark-haired azure-eyed man came up to him one night as the hanyou was putting away his guitar and getting ready to leave. The man, who looked just a little older than InuYasha himself, gazed at him with gleaming deep blue eyes and smiled in a devious, charming way. The mysterious man reached into the pocket and handed a card to the baffled half-demon.

"Good evening, my name is Miroku Houshi and this here is my card. I've wanted to start a label for quite some time now but I've never found any talent worth working for." The violet-eyed man explained, "But I think you've got an emotional rawness to you that are totally different from the bands out there now. You're like a refreshing breath of air from all those corporate bands that fake their emotions and songs -- but you're real. I can tell."

InuYasha stared blankly at the man, who called himself Miroku, ramble on passionately.

"What the hell are you talking about?" The hanyou blurted out rudely, but the dark-haired man ignored his crude language.

"What I'm _talking _about is that if you give me a chance and a couple of years, I can make you into an idol!" Miroku said excitedly as he turned towards the hanyou. His deep violet blue eyes were sparkling.

"Are you fucking serious?" InuYasha gasped out in disbelief. His mind couldn't grasp onto the idea and his heart was pounding wildly in his ears. His head was racing with the possibilities. '_Could this be it? Could this be the way to get to her?'_

"Of course." Miroku said simply. InuYasha gazed at him intensely with his intimidating golden amber eyes, but the dark-haired man did not look away from him. The half-demon took in a deep, calming breath and turned his attention towards the floor. He worded his question carefully, but he had already expected a 'no' as an answer. The silver-haired teenager knew it was a ridiculous question to ask, and he was sure that the man in front of him would laugh at him, but he fought his reluctance back and spat out the question with no regrets.

"Would I…Would you make me into an idol so big….that I would even be big in America?" InuYasha asked timidly as he avoided the man's gaze. Miroku burst out into laughter and InuYasha looked up angrily -- but he found that the dark-haired man was not laughing at him. The man just smiled at the hanyou's puzzled expression on his face.

"Why, that's what I intend to do." Miroku said confidently with his gleaming azure eyes.

The hanyou believed him and the rest was history.

-------**Present Time**

As InuYasha got out of the shower he hastily dried his wet silver hair and quickly got dressed. After slipping on a pair of ripped dark jeans and layering a gray long sleeved sweater under a deep maroon short sleeved shirt over his head, the hanyou crossed over the wooden floors of his room and sat on his bed routinely. He idly grabbed the remote control amidst the white bed sheets and turned the television on, while his clawed hands searched blindly underneath his bed.

"_InuYasha Takahashi's hit debut single, "The Mixed Tape" is number one on today's countdown…_" The television blared with the morning announcer's voice as InuYasha found his sneakers, unfazed. While he tied his old black converse sneakers with one hand, his other hand was switching channels constantly.

"_It seems no one can stop talking about Japan's hot new idol, InuYasha Takahashi…_"  
"_Once again, "The Mixed Tape" is number one…_"  
"_Tomorrow morning, we will be graced with an interview from none other than InuYasha Takahashi…_"  
"_OH MY GOD, I ABSOLUTELY LOVE INUYASHA! IF YOU'RE LISTENING, PLEASE MARRY ME---!_"

_  
_InuYasha pressed the red off button on his flat-screen television. Finally double-knotting the dirty laces of his scuffed up sneakers, he slipped on a worn out leather jacket and grabbed a purple beaded necklace from his wooden dresser. After putting it around his neck carefully, he slammed a gray hat over his dog ears and put on a pair of dark aviator sunglasses.

Done getting ready and with his usual morning routine, he locked the door of his penthouse apartment.

* * *

Almost immediately, InuYasha was greeted with a bunch of paparazzi cameras and crazed fans. 

"_InuYasha! InuYasha!"_  
"_How do you feel about your new success?_"  
"_Can you please sign this for me?_"  
"_INUYASHA!_"

The silver-haired hanyou was just a millisecond away from screaming at all of them to "fuck off."

But he was used to this. He should be used to this by now.

"Keh!" was all he said to the annoying crowd surrounding him, before he hurried into the stretch limo that was waiting for him. As he gave an exasperated sigh and muttered a few string of curses under his breath, he shut the car door in all of their faces. He took off his stupid hat and removed the silly sunglasses, with about a million voices still ringing in his ears.

He hated this. He fucking hated all of this.

The hanyou would kill just to stroll down the streets of Tokyo, as an average person.  
Not as Japan's idol, not as the latest trendsetting rock star, not as "that hot gorgeous guy."  
All he wanted was to get a goddamn coffee without being recognized.

But the hanyou had asked for this. He really wanted this. He had asked for it, and he got it.

InuYasha realized that he should be grateful, but he desperately wanted to be selfish.

"_InuYasha! InuYasha! InuYasha!"_  
Voices were still echoing in his head --  
All the voices except the one voice he wanted to hear so badly say his name.  
The hanyou could barely even remember the sound of her voice.  
All he knew was that it was sweet, accepting, and pure.

To ease his aching heart, he reached for the folded up piece of paper that was always in his breast pocket of his worn in leather jacket. He unfolded the crumpled up letter carefully. As the hanyou traced her scribbled handwriting carefully with his sharp demon fingernails, he read the words he so long ago memorized with golden eyes filled with affliction.

-------

"_I don't know what made me stumble onto you last night. I don't know what made me break into your house. I don't know what is making me write this letter. You may laugh at me, but I believe with all my heart that it was fate. I don't know if we'll ever see each other again...I don't know if you'll keep your promise. I don't know if you'll ever remember me years from now. I don't even know your name. I guess it was stupid of me to make each other promise not to tell each other's name. But what i'm trying to say is that all of these 'I don't know's' is really, really scaring me. Because I want to know. I want to know everything right now. I want to know if you'll ever think of me again. I want to know if we'll ever see each other again. I want to know what you think of me. _

_Because...Because...  
__The only thing that I do know is that...  
__I've fallen in love with you._

_I hope years from now that you'll find this stupid letter abandoned in your closet, if you haven't thrown this away already. And maybe you'll laugh at my tiny scribbled handwriting. Because then at least someone will be laughing at all of this. Someone should be laughing…when all I can do is cry._

_I will never forget you. I will never forget that night we shared together. I will never forget how hard it was to say goodbye._

_But you made a promise.  
__You promised me you wouldn't forget.  
__That's just one promise I want you to keep…_

_Please...don't forget me._

_Because I've given you all of me._

_--K" _

-------

As InuYasha traced her signature 'K' lovingly, the chauffeur's voice dragged him back into a cold, harsh reality that the hanyou now had to face.

"Here we are, Mr. Takahashi." The man dressed in black and white had opened the car door for him, expecting him to get out of the limousine. The half-demon wondered what would happen if he just slammed the expensive car door in his jolly smiling face and just hi-jacked the fucking limo and drive away -- far, far away from everything.

But the old letter in his hands were like a constant reminder to him. He delicately folded it back up and placed it in a pocket near his heart. He stuck the hat back on his head curtly and covered his golden eyes with the aviator sunglasses once again. He stepped out of the limousine and rudely passed the chauffeur without any thanks.

The hanyou looked up the large towering building he was about to enter.  
It had big silver letters right across the top -- "**KAZAANA RECORDS**"  
He sighed heavily as he stuck his clawed hands into his pockets and walked briskly into the posh building.

This was all for her.

* * *

"InuYasha, you're fifteen minutes late." The violet-eyed man scowled sternly, giving the hanyou that just walked in a cold icy glare. But it was all in vain as the silver-haired half-demon sat down indifferently in a chair next to him. 

"Fuck off, Miroku." InuYasha said, his arms behind his head and his legs sprawled in front of him in a lazy position. Miroku just rolled his azure eyes and smiled apologetically at the other people in the room. They nodded in understanding while the dark-haired manager felt relief wash over him. After taking a deep breath, he looked towards the dark-haired beauty sitting across the large table from him.

"So, Ms. Taijiya -- May I call you Sango? -- I am hoping that we will be able to work this tour out." Miroku said politely while all the while staring at the woman's assets. It was the hanyou's turn to roll his eyes. '_When will this pervert ever control himself!_'

The dark-eyed woman with pink eye-lined eyes glared at him with disgust, but nonetheless answered him.

"Yes, I am hoping that this will work out as well. And no, you may **not **call me Sango. Ms. Taijiya will be just fine. For you, anyway." She shut him down harshly as she fixed her straight dark hair into a high ponytail. InuYasha muffled a laugh while Miroku sat there grinning perversely, obviously unfazed by her cold remarks.

Suddenly, Miroku's dreamy indigo eyes snapped from his fantasies back into reality. He looked around the room with confusion and a questioning look on his face.

"By the way, where is---?"

But before the dark-haired man could finish his question, a young girl stumbled clumsily into the room. She was dressed in a short skirt and layered in long sleeved and short sleeved sweaters and blouses. Lacy leggings covered her thighs while the knee down was deep in black combat boots. Her look was topped off with a studded gray belt, while her long curly waves of raven hair draped down her back.

"Sorry I'm late! I was…" She looked across the room, apologizing profusely while rambling on the many excuses of why she was tardy. But as her eyes scanned the people in the room, her gaze lasted a little longer on a certain hanyou.

Stormy gray blue hues collided with golden amber eyes.

* * *

**_T o B e C o n t i n u e d . . ._**

* * *

**Author's Note:** I hope this chapter was as satisfying as possible! I was really pleased with how this chapter turned out and I had a lot of fun writing it, though it took me awhile to get through a couple parts. I'm hoping that this chapter has a lot of answers..but still brings up even more questions! Guess who will be coming in the next chapter! 

Overall, i'm so glad how this chapter turned out.  
I also love the cliffhanger I wrote in! I hope you guys liked it as well!

**Please Don't Forget to Review! Until Next Chapter!**

Sincerely,  
**AK-J.**

* * *

**Cover Art: **_Cover Art for the Prologue -- 'The Promise Upon Daybreak' and Chapter One -- 'The Song Inspired By The Morning-After' Coming Soon..._

**Inspiration for the Chapter:** Druihd's work once again (druihd. Pinku's work (pinku. various InuYasha fanart work from artists on and music from Vedera and Jack's Mannequin from Vedera and Jack's Mannequin are strongly suggested to listen to while reading this chapter!

* * *

**Final Disclaimers:** Once again, I do not own InuYasha or any of Rumiko Takahashi's characters. I also do not own Vedera's song, "Desire on Repeat".

* * *

**N e x t C h a p t e r o f T h e M i x e d T a p e - -  
**  
Chapter Two: The Girl _The Unfortunate Tour and the Unbearable Girl_

"_Where are you now?  
As I rearrange the songs again  
This mix could burn a hole in anyone,  
But it was you I was thinking of_..."

InuYasha meets the most untolerable girl he had ever met.  
He knew he didn't like her from the minute she stumbled into the meeting room.  
And for once, the hanyou was right -- they could barely get along.

Too bad their on tour together.


	3. Chapter Two & T h e G i r l

**Author's Note: **So after much thought and consideration, I've decided to make this my main focus for writing. It really pains me to put _Isn't Life Juicy? _on hiatus, but it's something that needs to be done since the school year, unfortunately, is about to start. I just _know _that I will not have nearly enough of the time that I want to spend on that story, so in the mean time I will be writing and focusing on this story when I have **free time**. This year will be very busy for me, so I'm just hoping that I will have enough time to write fanfiction -- so please bear with me and have the patience to wait for upcoming chapters.

Now without further ado I'd like to present to you the second chapter of _The Mixed Tape_!

**Disclaimers: **I do not own InuYasha or any of Rumiko Takahashi's characters. I also do not own the song 'The Mixed Tape' by Jack's Mannequin.

* * *

**The Mixed Tape **

_An Alternate Universe Fanfiction_

A n I n u Y a s h a & P a i r i n g F a n f i c  
By Aienkien-Jitsuni

* * *

**Chapter Two -- T h e G i r l  
****The Girl and The Chance Meeting **

"_Where are you now?  
As I rearrange the songs again  
__This mix could burn a hole in anyone  
__But it was you I was thinking of…_**" **

**

* * *

**

-------**4 years ago**

"_**H**_ey…I was thinking." The bright eyed girl turned her head excitedly towards her dark haired companion, her raven locks bouncing with the slightest of movement. As the boy kept his hands on the steering wheel, he gave a scrutinizing side glance at the young girl sitting in the passenger seat beside him.

"Well I'm happy for you. Glad to know that your mind is working." The boy mischievously grinned at the long winding road of asphalt in front of them. With his deep violet eyes, he passed the dashboard and glimpsed quickly at the clock above the radio. It blared 12:30AM, the digits bright red and clear. His smirk grew wider despite himself. Where the hell were they going to go this late at night? As city lights sped past them and illuminated his shining eyes, he suddenly realized that he really couldn't give a fuck as long as this girl was willing to go wherever they were heading.

The teenage boy's thoughts were quickly interrupted as the disruptive girl punched him in the arm forcefully. Her brows were furrowed in an angry pretend scowl, but her gray blue eyes were gleaming with playfulness.

"I'm serious! I was just thinking--" The boy sputtered out an intended cough, trying to push the raven-haired girl's buttons, but she continued unfazed, "and I suddenly realized that we haven't even introduced each other."

The violet eyed teenager sat there thoughtfully, carefully thinking about her words. His mind finally grasped the idea she was talking about. He really _didn't_ know her name. Why hadn't he realized this sooner?

"Keh! Okay, wench. So then what's your --" Before he could even finish the question, the girl slapped him on his arm, leaving a stinging pain behind.

"Ouch! What the fuck was that for!" He shouted at her, muttering a string of curses under his breath. If it weren't for him focusing on driving, he would've turned on the girl immediately. What the hell was that for? Finally, he turned his head towards the young raven-haired girl, with every intention on screaming and yelling in the girl's face. But before he could even bark out an obscene curse word at her, his violet eyed glare suddenly turned into a stare of confusion.

The dark haired teen stared fixated at her profile, which started to stir unknown emotions within him. There wasn't a trace of the playfulness or liveliness on her porcelain face as before. Her eyes were an unusual dark shade of gray, the flecks of blue in them practically gone. Her inky black tresses covered half of her face, but that didn't cover up the obvious sadness radiating from her. He had no idea what was going on with her. But the most striking thing about her was that her pale pink lips were parted in a small, bittersweet smile.

**It was in that moment that the boy discovered she was beautiful.  
**  
"Yeah…about the name thing…" She started off slowly, painfully. The raven haired girl closed her sad overcast eyes, as if preparing herself for a difficult task to deal with. The stunned boy sat there patiently, not realizing that he had stopped the car in the middle of the empty street. In a blink of an eye, her eyes fluttered open and she turned to him, fully facing him, with her gray blue eyes bright and shining and a wide grin on her face. Was he just imagining the sad look that was on her face earlier? He quickly dismissed his thoughts with the sound of her voice.

"It'll make things interesting if we don't tell each other's names, right?" The girl suggested eagerly, waggling her eyebrows cutely. Something in her voice sounded way too high and a little phony, as if she was feigning her obvious excitement. But the dark haired boy ignored the questioning feelings that were bubbling in him and played along.

"That sounds pretty stupid." The boy muttered stubbornly, crossing his arms and turning his dark haired head away from hers. Somehow, he felt that it was the right response to that question, even if he was being an inflexible ass about it.

"C'mon…think about it! We just met, oh say, just a few hours ago without any introductions, without any previous relations to each other before. It was a chance meeting, really. But because I'm leaving tomorrow…there's really no point in telling our names now right?" As she talked her way through it, something about the last part of the question made the teenage boy feel uneasy. When she said that last part he noticed a slight fall in her voice, a flicker of pain in her eyes…but once again, he thought it was purely his imagination and his mind was fucking with him. As he thought about her reasoning, he quickly reached a decision with a gruff nod of his head.

"Well, I guess so." He said simply, his violet eyes catching a look of relief on the girl's angelic face. Relief…from what? But that look lasted for a brief moment before she broke into a big wide grin, her pretty smile abolishing all of the boy's previous thoughts.

"I'll take that as a promise." She concluded with a nod of her head. Childishly, she held out her hand with only her pinky finger sticking out. The dark-haired boy, already used to her behavior, avoided her gaze as he locked his pinky finger with hers. A slight blush tinted his cheeks as her smile grew wider from his actions.

The dark haired teenager, bashful and flustered, suddenly realized that he had practically parked his car in the middle of the street. But it no longer mattered since it was so late that there were barely any cars passing by at this time. Shifting it back into gear, he put his foot on the gas pedal and sped through the deserted street. Rolling the car's windows down, he let the summer air engulf them -- their dark manes whipping past them and entangling themselves.

After the wave of embarrassment was gone and his face was done turning into different shades of a tomato, he became conscious of the fact that the girl beside him didn't make fun of him for his stupid car blunder. He felt a gratitude grow within him, but as he turned his dark eyes towards the raven haired girl he suddenly comprehended that she was too busy relishing the summer breeze wrapping around her.

**The image of her made him smile contentedly for the first time in years.**

His hands gripped the steering wheel as they drove on continuously with no destination. The roads of Tokyo were theirs tonight. There was no limit to where they could and could not go. There was a feeling of possibilitiy surrounding them, a once in a lifetime chance adventure, just waiting to unfold with their nighttime antics. Bright promising stars were speckled throughout the sky.

"So where to, Miss I-Don't-Know-Your-Name?" The dark haired teen asked playfully as he started to turn onto whichever street he felt like. The young girl gave him a sweet smile at the little joke he made.

But despite the summer night awaiting them and despite the smile that she gave him…it didn't comfort the uneasiness he felt when he caught that sad look on her face, the vision of her looking so cheerless was engraved in his mind. Something in his gut, something deep down in his heart was telling him that making that promise was a mistake.

But the teenage boy let his troubled feelings subside as he and the girl drove on into the dark enigmatic night.

* * *

-------**Present Time **

InuYasha gasped as his golden amber orbs widened when his eyes locked with the girl's stormy gray blue hues.

Almost immediately his heart started to pound wildly, the sound of its pulse ringing in his demon dog ears. The hanyou suddenly felt lightheaded and his head was racing with thoughts and distorted memories, overwhelming him with a buzzing feeling -- as if he had forgotten something very, very important. An alarming, panicking feeling washed over him and his mind tried to grasp whatever it was he was trying to remember. But the more he tried to remember, the more his memory started to blur.

What the hell was going on?

After silently calming himself down and regaining his composure, he looked up ready and prepared for a confrontation of some sort. But to his surprise the raven-haired girl had broke away from his fixated gaze on her long before and had already taken a seat across from him. For some odd reason, this bothered him.

"And who the hell are _you_?" He asked harshly, narrowing his golden flecked eyes in an intense glare. The young girl just smiled politely, obviously looking very uncomfortable and awkward in front of his heated stare. But nonetheless, she gave him a strange look as she held out her hand, her fingernails covered in chipped black polish.

"Uhm…I'm Kagome. A pleasure to meet you, Mr. Takahashi. I'm a big fan of your work." InuYasha gave a disgusted look at her hand and turned his silver haired head away snobbishly. The girl's face expressed a look of annoyance, but nonetheless a smile was plastered on her face -- creating a scowl that graced her porcelain features.

"You're Kagome, _who_?" The hanyou asked rudely, obviously wondering why he was giving this mysterious girl the time of day. For some reason, he didn't like being around her. There was just something about her that made him feel…well, _weird_. All of these unwanted peculiar feelings were starting to creep up on him, just from meeting this girl named Kagome. She was so familiar, yet he was sure that he had never met this girl in his life. He couldn't explain it. He didn't know what was going on. All he knew was that he just didn't like this girl.

Not to mention that his throbbing headache wasn't improving his mood at all.

The raven haired girl's smile vanished from her face, a grimace taking its place. Her stormy gray blue eyes were fierce and narrowed dangerously, but before she could say anything about the hanyou's disrespectful behavior his lecherous manager quickly stepped in to save him.

"Why, she's Kagome _Higurashi_, InuYasha. The famous international pop rock star from _America_." Miroku explained smoothly, saying the last sentence slowly -- hoping his emphasis on that piece of information would make the half demon realize how important this meeting was. The dark haired man turned towards the two women in the room, grinning nervously and winking charmingly. "That InuYasha Takahashi, he's such a kidder!" The manager nudged the hanyou harshly in the gut with his elbow, wishing that the silver haired half-demon would take the hint.

"Keh! Kagome Higurashi, eh? Haven't heard of you before." InuYasha said arrogantly, crossing his arms and leaning back in his chair with his feet up on the table. The violet eyed man mentally groaned and wanted desperately to bang his head multiple times on the wall but resisted the urge and instead grinned apologetically. Sometimes, Miroku just wanted to strangle that incompetent ass of a half demon…

"You're a conceited asshole!" Kagome spoke out boldly, her staggering stormy hued eyes glaring daggers at the half demon. Everyone's head turned towards the young pop rock sensation, stunned at the blunt comment she had made of the hanyou. InuYasha was practically floored, his jaw agape. But he recovered quickly, his golden amber eyes filled with a fiery determination to rip this girl apart.

"Well, you're a fucking bitch! Who do you think you're dealing wit--" Before InuYasha could even finish his sentence, he felt a sudden impact on his chair legs, causing him to lean way back and crash onto the floor with a loud thud. Kagome admired her work, her arms crossed victoriously and giving a satisfied grin. The raven haired beauty was just happy that she could kick his ass…well, kick his chair, anyway.

"I think that I'm dealing with Japan's most egotistical jerk, is all." After having her final say in the matter, she turned on her knee-high black combat boots and left a bewildered and royally pissed off hanyou on the ground. As the young girl passed by the dark haired manager, she bowed apologetically in his direction.

"I'm sorry for the disturbance I've caused you. And I'm also sorry you have to deal with him everyday." Kagome said this genuinely and gave Miroku a kindhearted smile. She turned her raven haired head quickly and headed for the door. Her manager hastily gathered up her things and followed her client's actions with a bow of apology directed towards the violet eyed man.

"I'm also, very sorry...I don't know, I have no idea…what had gotten into her…" Mumbling out her apologies, Sango kept glancing at the young international celebrity, her pink eye-lined brown eyes filled with conflicting confusion. "Here's my card. I'll contact you later." Giving the lecherous manger one last look of repentance, she bowed a final time before she hurried after the raven haired girl.

But international pop rock sensation, Kagome Higurashi, was already out the door before her manager even started in pursuit after her.

* * *

"Kagome, what the hell is wrong with you!" Sango exclaimed, not knowing what to feel -- expressions of confusion, anger, and concern colliding on her face for her client and best friend. The frustrated dark haired woman sighed heavily inwardly, once again noticing the complications and hardships of being both a stern manager and a supporting friend. Sometimes it was great, and sometimes it was pain in the ass to deal with, but as long as she was there for Kagome, none of that really mattered. Sango pushed all of her thoughts aside as she glued her dark brown eyes at the back of the storming young girl. 

"Would you just hold on a minute?" Sango exasperated pleadingly, her long sleek ponytail swaying violently behind her. As the young raven haired girl slowed down, her manager quickly grasped her arm forcefully, halting Kagome in her tracks. The dark haired manager took a deep breath, closing her pink eye-lined brown eyes in silent meditation. Once she opened them she had regained her senses and had controlled her flaring temper. After letting go of the young girl's arm, she gently approached her.

"What's wrong, Kagome? You know you can tell me anything…." With this quiet statement, Sango stared intensely at the back of her friend's head, deep concern welling in her brown eyes. The girl in question turned around, her porcelain face revealing weariness and exhaustion while her gray blue eyes were overflowing with apprehension. She was visibly upset, not even bothering to hide it, and it worried Sango even more.

"Sango…I…I don't know what came over me." Kagome answered softly, heavy guilt weighing her words down. She looked away from her friend's anxious brown eyed gaze and stared intently at the lobby floor, the gray blue depths of her eyes deep in contemplation. "But, just something about that guy…really, really bothered me." Her midnight locks stirred with her as she shook her head, as if rejecting the very idea of…what?

When Sango noticed that Kagome was in deep turmoil, the dark haired woman suddenly realized that her young client was always constantly battling herself, struggling with emotions deep inside her that Kagome hadn't even confided her with. And this was saying a lot because they have been friends and partners for a very long time. Not unless something had happened to her way before they had even met…But what event of the past could Kagome possibly still be dealing with? She was such a strong, independent girl -- her optimistic wisdom and ladylike maturity way beyond the nineteen year old.

But Kagome's solemn voice snapped Sango right out of her thoughts.

"But his pigheaded behavior wasn't the thing that bothered me, although that ass deserved what he got." Kagome concluded quietly, almost sounding like she was trying to convince herself that what she had said was true. The young raven haired girl squinted her stormy hued eyes in deep concentration, as if she was struggling to remember something, anything. "It was almost like déjà vu…" Her voice was in a hushed whisper and Sango watched her attentively, both of them waiting for a momentous breakthrough to happen.

But nothing happened.

With another shake of her head and allowing a sigh of deep disappointment escape from her lips, Kagome looked up at her friend with her sparkling gray blue eyes -- shaking off whatever weird feelings she was having and determined to move on with life. She looked like she was back to normal, but Sango knew better as she noticed the strained lines of her friend's familiar smile.

"Oh well, whatever it was that was bothering me, I was probably just imagining things! I just don't like the guy, and lucky for him, I just _know _that we won't have to deal with that arrogant asshole anymore, right Sango?" Kagome chirped cheerfully, leaving her strange foreign emotions and the grim conversation behind her as she walked away in her black combat boots.

But the raven haired girl blinked her bright eyes, noticing that her best friend and manager hadn't said a word, not to mention she wasn't even following her. As Kagome turned around, she was surprised to find that it was Sango's turn to stare at the ground and avoid her gaze. What in the world…?

"Sango, c'mon let's go grab a coffee or somethi--" But Kagome's plans were immediately interrupted with her manager's serious voice.

"Kagome…you're going to hate me…" Sango started off slowly, cracking her knuckles nervously, a habit that Kagome wasn't very fond of. But the young girl knew her friend well enough to know that whenever Sango did that, it meant really, really bad news -- devastating even. Kagome mentally prepared herself for the disaster as her dark haired friend looked up at her with earnest, apologetic pink made up brown eyes.

"I've already booked a whole month tour with InuYasha Takahashi."

The world as Kagome Higurashi knew it crashed down on her with an intense injustice.

* * *

Miroku Houshi glared at his hanyou client with an intense and heated violet eyed gaze. 

"Great job, InuYasha. Way to piss off America's international pop rock sensation in no less than five minutes. That's got to be a new record." The dark haired manger spoke bitterly, an obvious sarcastic tone evident in his voice. Already used to the half demon's rude actions and behavior, Miroku tried to keep his temper and his cool. But with the manager's keen sense of knowing, Miroku had a strange feeling that there was more to InuYasha's behavior than it seemed.

Nonetheless, the silver haired half demon remained uncharacteristically silent.

If InuYasha wasn't going to talk, Miroku was going to force it out of him the hard way.

"So…are you going to tell me why you were acting that way?"  
"…"  
"Are you going to explain to me why you were being an asshole to that girl?"  
"…"  
"Are you just going to sit there and listen to me talk to myself?"  
"_…_"  
"…"  
"…"  
"…"  
"Tell your dear older brother that I think he's cute."  
"_MIROKU, THAT'S JUST FUCKING SICK!_"

The dark haired man's azure eyes sparkled mischievously, quirking a clever smile at the now disgusted hanyou. A disturbing mental image always did the trick to break someone's resilient silence, and the hanyou was no different. But after a short moment of spastic gagging noises, the hanyou became soundless once again, his golden amber eyes glued to the meeting room floor. Miroku was utterly shocked, taken aback by the half demon's revert to wordless quiet. That trick had _always_ worked on InuYasha, until now.

"InuYasha…" Miroku said solemnly, starting off slowly with the hanyou's name, but the silver haired half demon evaded the confrontation.

"Keh! Will you just lay off my back, Miroku! Just drop the fucking subject already." InuYasha replied stubbornly, crossing his arms and avoiding his manager's sharp cobalt eyes that were fixated on him.

Miroku had just about enough of his client's bullshit attitude.

"You know what? I _won't _drop the fucking subject, because that _subject _is vital and essential to your future career! We obviously need to talk about it because if we don't you'll never reach the goal that you are trying to achieve!" The dark haired man scolded the hanyou harshly, taking out all of the frustrations and the stress that was accompanied with his half demon friend directly at him. But while Miroku's voice was ruthless and severe, surprisingly the dark haired manager had managed to still sound calm and collected, a talent that he had seemed to possess.

"Now will you please just tell me what the hell went wrong?" Miroku asked wearily, placing his arm on his knee and rubbing furiously at his tired eyelids. The dark haired man suddenly realized that he had only gotten two hours of sleep last night.

InuYasha had gotten the point of his manager's brutal yet true message and after finally mustering up the strength and nerve he needed, the hanyou looked up at his exhausted friend to face an unwanted confrontation. His golden flecked eyes filled with great affliction stunned Miroku. Clearing his throat halfheartedly, InuYasha reluctantly started to pour out his troubled feelings.

"There was just something about that girl, Miroku…there was just something about her..." InuYasha repeated softly almost to himself. Miroku watched the hanyou intently, a million conflicting expressions clashing with one another on his friend's face.

It was weird to think that just minutes before InuYasha was a scowling, conceited immature man at the ripe age of twenty -- when in reality he had a hidden side of himself, a side that only Miroku knew of, a side that was almost as emotional and vulnerable as that of a child. It was a side that InuYasha constantly held back, covering and veiling his insecurities and painful memories with the typical famous idol persona: vain, outspoken, arrogant, and stuck-up. But Miroku saw through all of that and knew InuYasha for what he really was -- sensitive, emotional, and a hopeless romantic, which were qualities that InuYasha would never dare utter out loud. '_And all because of one summer night, four years ago…_'

But Miroku's thoughts were alarmingly interrupted when he heard his friend's anxious voice.

"Something about her just made me want to…" What? What had pushed InuYasha so far as to act like that to a potential opportunity for him to reach audiences all the way to the U.S? What had bothered him so much that InuYasha had nearly thrown away four years of backbreaking, grueling work? Work that demanded sacrifices from the both of them -- including blood, sweat, and tears.

Miroku waited patiently for an answer as the hanyou struggled with his words.

"Something about that girl…when I first saw her…her eyes…it was almost like fucking déjà vu…she was so familiar…yet so unfamiliar at the same time…I swear I've never even met her…And then all of these emotions…these memories…feelings from that night four years ago…It was almost as if…"

But right before InuYasha was about to say something, right before the half demon could grasp onto the idea, right before what Miroku felt sure was going to be a big step forward towards InuYasha finally remembering the girl from four years ago...

InuYasha had already forgotten what he was about to say.

The hanyou's golden amber eyes were narrowed desperately in deep concentration and thought, frantically trying to remember something -- anything. But all InuYasha got were a bunch of blurred images and fragmented pieces that didn't make sense to him at all. An overwhelming wave of uneasiness, disappointment, and defeat crashed down on the hanyou, bringing him to bury his tan face into the palms of his clawed hands. Miroku put a comforting hand on his arm, trying to console a desperate heartbroken friend.

"I'm so fucking messed up, Miroku…" InuYasha confessed coarsely into his hands, silver tresses spilling over his shoulders and around his face. "I can't even remember her face…yet I'm still searching for this girl. No matter how hard I tried, I couldn't forget about her…I couldn't _fucking_ forget about her…why?" InuYasha looked up as if Miroku held the answer to his question, which revealed glassy amber flecked eyes -- anguish and pain deep within the depths of gold. The dark haired manager just looked all knowingly at his confused, desperate friend.

"Because you're in love with her, dumb ass. I thought out of all people _you _would've at least figured that out, despite being densely clueless about everything around you." Miroku said lightheartedly, a kind sincere smile gracing his boyish face. InuYasha smiled back gratefully, thankful that his friend was no longer pushing the subject and had decided to let the conversation drop. This confrontation with Miroku, and of the past, had given the half demon one hell of a headache -- and almost immediately the solemn, grave air that surrounded them evaporated.

"Hey Miroku, I'm really…I'm really sorry about the way I was acting before. I guess I just didn't like the girl. I was really acting like an asshole." InuYasha apologized self-consciously, silently cursing the very idea of serious apologies and '_I'm sorry's_'. For some odd reason the hanyou hated saying that he was sorry and always apologized with great difficulty. In his opinion, they were usually just a pain in the ass to deal with but this time, Miroku deserved one.

"You also forgot to apologize for insulting America's young teenage pop rock star, for being rude and out of line with me, for not being able to take a hint, _and _for being a pompous, conceited, overconfident, egotistical jackass--" Miroku smirked devilishly as the playful glint returned to his dark indigo eyes.

"Fine! I get it already, but whatever, do you forgive me now?" InuYasha asked exasperatedly, seriously tempted to 'Iron Reaver Soul Steal' Miroku's ass if he didn't just shut the hell up and forgive him already. But the silver haired hanyou felt a foreboding sense of horror as a twisted, unpleasant grin widened on his manager's face. InuYasha was always a victim of Miroku's trademark grin -- a ghastly sign that meant he was going to try his boyish charm and clever wits to let down terrible news on you gently, no matter how upsetting or disturbing the news could possibly be.

"I'll forgive you if you…"

InuYasha braced himself for the impact, suddenly realizing that this was the thanks he was getting for apologizing.  
But before the hanyou could get royally pissed off at his dark haired friend and tear him limb from limb violently,  
Miroku had surprisingly stated the news, plain and simple, without irritatingly beating around the bush.

"…Accept the fact that you'll be going on a month tour with Kagome Higurashi."

For the second time that day, the world crashed down with an extreme unfairness --  
But this time, on a completely different person. Specifically, a certain hanyou.

InuYasha took his apology back in an instant.

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**_T O B E C O N T I N U E D …_**

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**Author's Note:** For once this chapter only took a couple of days for me to write and it was surprisingly easy to write, despite it being a non-exciting chapter. This chapter somehow turned a little more angsty than I had expected but hopefully I didn't get out of character. Also I'm starting to realize that I keep changing the names of the chapter, so that it ends up different from the preview from the last chapter, but please bear with me on that! Anyway, I really liked how this chapter turned out and it was a lot of fun to write, but the only thing I'm kind of unsure about is the ending to this chapter -- but hopefully it's good enough for you guys, even though I'm not really satisfied with it. 

Overall, I really enjoyed writing this chapter!  
I hope all of you enjoy it as well!

**Please Don't Forget to Review! Until Next Chapter!**

Sincerely,  
**AK-J.**

_P.S. --- Sophomore Orientation is tomorrow, yikes! Which means school is starting terribly soon, which unfortunately means not a lot of free time to write fanfiction. I would love to get in another chapter before school starts but it seems unlikely because this week is going to be ridiculously busy with my birthday coming up (on Friday), orientation tomorrow, and cramming as many last minute hang out plans with friends. But have no worries, because I try to write whenever I have the free time. _

But I'd just like to have this time to thank all my reviewers and all of their encouraging reviews and endless support.  
You guys are my motivation, so keep those reviews up -- and thanks so much for reading a story I've been working really hard on.  
It really, really means a lot to me.

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**Cover Art: **Cover Art for the _The Mixed Tape_ can be found at this link :  
Cover art for the Prologue -- _The Promise Upon Daybreak _can be found at this link: 

**Inspiration for the Chapter:** pinku's gaia art ( pinku. ), various InuYasha fan artwork from artists on deviantart, and various music including Jack's Mannequin, Something Corporate, October Fall, and Hit the Lights.

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**Final Disclaimers:** Once again, I do not own InuYasha or any of Rumiko Takahashi's characters. I also do not own Jack Mannequin's song, "The Mixed Tape".

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**N e x t C h a p t e r o f T h e M i x e d T a p e - -  
**  
Chapter Two: The Fights _The Endless Fights on the Tour Bus_

Japan's Idol, InuYasha Takahashi and the U.S.'s Pop Rock Sensation, Kagome Higurashi, are ready to strangle each other…  
…and it's only the first day of the tour.

How in the world will these two manage to share a stage together, let alone live with one another in a tour bus?

Meanwhile, InuYasha's not the only one having strange dreams about a certain summer night four years ago…


End file.
